[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Doug, there are about 20,000 BTUs in a pound of gasoline, about 6 pounds
to the U.S. gallon. A high school physics text and Marks' Handbook for
Engineers (in the reference section of most larger libraries) will
contain a lot of the information you might need.
A text on internal combustion engines that is about as clearly and simply
written as any such text can be is "The High-Speed Internal Combustion
Engine" by Ricardo and Hempson, 5th edition 1956or 1957, publisher
Blackie of Edinburgh. There are earlier editions by Ricardo alone.
Recovering exhaust and coolant heat tends to be complicated and
expensive. It's best not to lose it in the first place, but there are
practical limits.
Diesels have a definite advantage over conventional spark ignition
gasoline engines in maximum efficiency, because they can operate at
higher compression and therefore expansion ratios. However, where
Diesels really shine is part load efficiency; gasoline engines suffer
badly at part load.
Designing the transmission and suspension (including tires) for comfort,
handling and performance involves major losses. Opportunities for
reducing aerodynamic losses involve belly pans (maintenance problems?)
and attention to the flow from the belly to the sides. It seems that the
flow separation at the rear can be reduced, but the vehicle may look odd.
If you are near a university which has a mechanical engineering
department, browsing the archive of the Journal of the Society pf
Automotive Engineers might interest you. There is a British equivalent;
if memory serves thirty years ago it was the Journal of the Society of
Chartered Mechanical Engineers.
Doug Woodard
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
Thanks to you and all the others who gave me more to think about. What
triggered the question in my mind was a claim of a 500 MPG car that
appeared in a newsgroup I follow, and after having seen the VW 1l/100km
car, and what design implementation went into that, I had wondered if a
500 MPG car could possibly be any larger than a roller skate. And then,
with a passenger of average weight, the numbers just don't look as good
any more.
LOL
thanks again, all!
doug swanson
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